Decarbonising the iron and steel sector for a 2 °C target using inherent waste streams.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Sun Y
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8758725 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Legacy iron (Fe) and steel wastes have been identified as a significant source of silicate minerals, which can undergo carbonation reactions and thus sequester carbon dioxide (CO2). In reactor experiments, i.e., at elevated temperatures, pressures, or CO2 concentrations, these wastes have high silicate to carbonate conversion rates. However, what is less understood is whether a more "passive" approach to carbonation can work, i.e., whether a traditional slag emplacement method (heaped and then buried) promotes or hinders CO2 sequestration. In this paper, the results of characterization of material retrieved from a first of its kind drilling program on a historical blast furnace slag heap at Consett, U.K., are reported. The mineralogy of the slag material was near uniform, consisting mainly of melilite group minerals with only minor amounts of carbonate minerals detected. Further analysis established that total carbon levels were on average only 0.4% while average calcium (Ca) levels exceeded 30%. It was calculated that only ?3% of the CO2 sequestration potential of the >30 Mt slag heap has been utilized. It is suggested that limited water and gas interaction and the mineralogy and particle size of the slag are the main factors that have hindered carbonation reactions in the slag heap.
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Project description:Due to oil shortage and environmental problems, synthetic plastics have to be replaced by different biodegradable materials. A promising alternative could be polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), and the low-cost abundant agricultural starchy by-products could be usefully converted into PHAs by properly selected and/or developed microbes. Among the widely available starchy waste streams, a variety of residues have been explored as substrates, such as broken, discolored, unripe rice and white or purple sweet potato waste. Cupriavidus necator DSM 545, a well-known producer of PHAs, was adopted in a simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) process through an optimized dosage of the commercial amylases cocktail STARGEN™ 002. Broken rice was found to be the most promising carbon source with PHAs levels of up to 5.18 g/L. This research demonstrates that rice and sweet potato waste are low-cost feedstocks for PHAs production, paving the way for the processing of other starchy materials into bioplastics.
| S-EPMC7407217 | biostudies-literature
Project description:An eco-friendly approach to inhibit the corrosion of boiler quality (BQ) steel by onion waste in acidic media was investigated. The extract from onion peel was characterized using the conventional extraction method and was characterized using HPLC. The efficacy of the onion peel extract (OPE) as a green corrosion inhibitor was studied using the weight loss method and a variety of electrochemical techniques, including open-circuit potential (OCP), potentiodynamic polarization (PDP), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The Tafel polarization revealed that at 200 mg L−1 of onion peel extract (OPE), corrosion current density was reduced maximum in both 1 (M) HCl and 0.5 (M) H2SO4 media. From the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy studies, the maximum inhibition efficiencies of 91.30% and 90.71% were found at 200 mg L−1 in 1 (M) HCl and 0.5 (M) H2SO4, respectively. The Langmuir isotherm was determined to be the best-fitting model, and the thermodynamic parameter, such as free energy Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11696-022-02549-7.
| S-EPMC9589875 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Iron and steel slag (ISS) is a byproduct of iron refining processes. The lack of iron in seawater can cause barren grounds where algae cannot grow. To improve the barren grounds of the sea, a supply of iron to the seawater is necessary. This study focused on bacteria interacting with ISS and promoting iron elution in seawater. Sulfitobacter sp. (TO1A) and Pseudomonas sp. (TO1B) were isolated from Tokyo Bay and Sagami Bay. The co-culture of both bacteria promoted more iron elution than individual cultures. After the incubation of both bacteria with ISS, quartz and vaterite appeared on the surface of the ISS. To maintain continuous iron elution from the ISS in the seawater, we also isolated Pseudoalteromonas sp. (TO7) that formed a yellow biofilm on the ISS. Iron was eluted by TO1A and TO1B, and biofilm was synthesized by TO7 continuously in the seawater. The present research is expected to contribute to the improvement of ISS usage as a material for the construction of seaweed forests.
| S-EPMC8002712 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The continuous deposition of hazardous metalliferous wastes derived from industrial steelmaking processes will lead to space shortages while valuable raw metals are being depleted. Currently, these landfilled waste products pose a rich resource for microbial thermoacidophilic bioleaching processes. Six thermoacidophilic archaea (Sulfolobus metallicus, Sulfolobus acidocaldarius, Metallosphaera hakonensis, Metallosphaera sedula, Acidianus brierleyi, and Acidianus manzaensis) were cultivated on metal waste product derived from a steelmaking process to assess microbial proliferation and bioleaching potential. While all six strains were capable of growth and bioleaching of different elements, A. manzaensis outperformed other strains and its bioleaching potential was further studied in detail. The ability of A. manzaensis cells to break down and solubilize the mineral matrix of the metal waste product was observed via scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Refinement of bioleaching operation parameters shows that changes in pH influence the solubilization of certain elements, which might be considered for element-specific solubilization processes. Slight temperature shifts did not influence the release of metals from the metal waste product, but an increase in dust load in the bioreactors leads to increased element solubilization. The formation of gypsum crystals in course of A. manzaensis cultivation on dust was observed and clarified using single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The results obtained from this study highlight the importance of thermoacidophilic archaea for future small-scale as well as large-scale bioleaching operations and metal recycling processes in regard to circular economies and waste management. A thorough understanding of the bioleaching performance of thermoacidophilic archaea facilitates further environmental biotechnological advancements.
| S-EPMC9043896 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThe waste and recycling sector is a growing part of industry. Whether health surveillance is indicated and how it should be undertaken is unclear.AimsTo undertake a review of the literature to identify hazards to health, biological effects and occupational illnesses for workers in the sector.MethodsA systematic review of the published literature and two UK databases.ResultsRates of fatal, non-fatal injuries and self-reported work-related illness were found to be higher in the waste and recycling sector than in UK industry as a whole. There was an increased prevalence of respiratory, gastro-intestinal and skin complaints in workers exposed to compost relative to controls. They may also be at increased risk of extrinsic allergic alveolitis, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, occupational asthma and abnormalities of lung function. Workers involved with the recycling of batteries and cables may be at risk of lead poisoning and exposure to other heavy metals. There were case reports of mercury poisoning from the recycling of fluorescent lights. Cases of occupational asthma have been reported in association with wood and paper recycling. The recycling of e-waste may cause exposure to heavy metals and organic pollutants, such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers, dioxins and polyaromatic hydrocarbons, which have been associated with damage to DNA and adverse neonatal outcomes.ConclusionsIll-health and adverse biological effects have been described in waste and recycling workers, but their true prevalence has probably not been captured. Targeted health surveillance may be required to assess exposure and to identify occupational illness.
| S-EPMC5927023 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Both steelmaking via an electric arc furnace and manufacturing of portland cement are energy-intensive and resource-exploiting processes, with great amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission and alkaline solid waste generation. In fact, most CO2 capture and storage technologies are currently too expensive to be widely applied in industries. Moreover, proper stabilization prior to utilization of electric arc furnace slag are still challenging due to its high alkalinity, heavy metal leaching potentials and volume instability. Here we deploy an integrated approach to mineralizing flue gas CO2 using electric arc furnace slag while utilizing the reacted product as supplementary cementitious materials to establish a waste-to-resource supply chain toward a circular economy. We found that the flue gas CO2 was rapidly mineralized into calcite precipitates using electric arc furnace slag. The carbonated slag can be successfully utilized as green construction materials in blended cement mortar. By this modulus, the global CO2 reduction potential using iron and steel slags was estimated to be ~138 million tons per year.
| S-EPMC5722910 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The volume of slags generated from the steel industry is a source of possible resources which is constantly increasing. Specifically, in the production of stainless steel, specific and singular slags with unique characteristics are obtained, which allows considering an approach aimed at their use in new recycling ways. This work shows the feasibility of using stainless steel slag as a substitute for limestone filler in the manufacture of self-compacting concrete. The influence of different treatments applied to slags on physical and chemical properties was studied. On the other hand, the mechanical behaviour, as well as the durability acquired in self-compacting concrete, has been analysed. Very encouraging results were obtained, since this research demonstrates the possible application of this stainless steel slag as a construction material, improving sustainability and promoting circular economy processes, which are achieved through the minimisation of the waste disposal and accumulation.
| S-EPMC7254312 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND:Molecular studies of Bacillus diversity in various environments have been reported. However, there have been few investigations concerning Bacillus in steel plant environments. In this study, genotypic and phenotypic diversity and phylogenetic relationships among 40 bacterial isolates recovered from steel plant waste were investigated using classical and molecular methods. RESULTS:16S rDNA partial sequencing assigned all the isolates to the Bacillus genus, with close genetic relatedness to the Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus cereus groups, and to the species Bacillus sphaericus. tDNA-intergenic spacer length polymorphisms and the 16S-23S intergenic transcribed spacer region failed to identify the isolates at the species level. Genomic diversity was investigated by molecular typing with rep (repetitive sequence) based PCR using the primer sets ERIC2 (enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus), (GTG)5, and BOXAIR. Genotypic fingerprinting of the isolates reflected high intraspecies and interspecies diversity. Clustering of the isolates using ERIC-PCR fingerprinting was similar to that obtained from the 16S rRNA gene phylogenetic tree, indicating the potential of the former technique as a simple and useful tool for examining relationships among unknown Bacillus spp. Physiological, biochemical and heavy metal susceptibility profiles also indicated considerable phenotypic diversity. Among the heavy metal compounds tested Zn, Pb and Cu were least toxic to the bacterial isolates, whereas Ag inhibited all isolates at 0.001 mM. CONCLUSION:Isolates with identical 16S rRNA gene sequences had different genomic fingerprints and differed considerably in their physiological capabilities, so the high levels of phenotypic diversity found in this study are likely to have ecological relevance.
| S-EPMC2588453 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Biodegradable plastics, either fossil- or biobased, are often promoted due to their biodegradability and acclaimed environmental friendliness. However, as demonstrated by previous literature, considerable confusion exists about the appropriate source separation and waste management of these plastics. Present study investigated this confusion based on manual sorting analyses of waste sampled from packaging waste (P), biowaste (B) and residual waste (R) in an urban area of Austria. The results were evaluated relative to near-infrared sensor-based sorting trials conducted in a German urban area. Although existing literature has focused on waste composition analyses (mostly in stand-alone studies) of the three waste streams, the present study focused on identifying the specific types of biodegradable plastic items found in each of these streams. Supermarket carrier bags (P = 90, B = 14, R = 33) and dustbin bags (P = 2, B = 46, R = 6) were found in all three waste streams in the Austrian urban area. Similarly, in the German urban area dustbin bags (P = 1, B = 106, R = 3) were the common items. The results indicate that certain bioplastic items were present in more than one bin; thus, hinting that consumers are not necessarily aware of how-to source-separate the biodegradable plastics. This suggests that neither consumers nor current waste management systems are fully 'adapted' to bioplastics, and the management of these plastics' waste is currently not optimal.
| S-EPMC11373150 | biostudies-literature